Why we didn't do sleepovers

When my children were in elementary school and into middle school, I did not let them go to sleepovers. Yes, this made me unpopular with my kids, their friends, and their friends' parents. When asked why, I would say, "The statistics for sexual abuse among children are 1 in 4. That's one of mine. I'm improving the statistics by making it as difficult as I can for my child to be a victim. It is easier to have a blanket rule of no sleepovers than trying to make decisions and not hurt other's feelings."

This did offend people. And it made it hard for me to turn around and then offer my house as a sleepover option. 

My children are 19, 17, 16 and 13. Of course there were some exceptions, but not many. They did get to spend the night with cousins, grandparents, and super close family friends. 

Today, I read an article in today's Dispatch about a Dayton doctor who was convicted of "13 sex related charges involving four girls who stayed at his homes during his daughter's sleepovers." (This story is not available online as it is from the Dayton Daily News. Here is the link to the beginning of the article http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/jury-finds-doctor-guilty-in-child-sex-crimes-trial/nYYg4/)

As I was looking for the link to this article, I googled the title "Man convicted of raping girls at sleepovers" and was surprised by the fact that there were 10 + stories regarding rape and sleepovers. 

I was wrong about the statistics. The National Center for the Victim's of Crime reports 1 in 5 girls and 1in 20 boys.

This is a real threat, parents. We might have to be unpopular to protect our children.